Acorn Translation Services UK

Acorn Translations can supply, along with your translation, a company certificate covering all your legal requirements.

 Notes on Certification of Translation

A. Documents required for general discussion or information purposes.

No certificate required.

B. Documents required for litigation purposes.

An Acorn Translations certificate required for each document.

Normally sufficient for a court and the opposing side.  The certificate indicates that the translation was carried out independently from either of the parties concerned and that it was carried out by a professional translator.

C. Documents required for probate, incorporation, etc.

An Acorn Translations certificate is required for each document.

Additionally, the original English may need to be legalised through the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and the translator may need to swear an affidavit or the translation may need to be notarised by a Notary Public. The requirements vary between countries. Therefore, it is advisable to check with the relevant embassy prior to commencing the translation.

D. Documents for use in the UK Courts.

An Acorn Translations certificate will normally suffice.

If the documents are to be used for probate, then the translator usually needs to sign an affidavit.

^{* Acorn Translations Limited can only give guidance as to what it believes to be the correct course of action.  It cannot take any responsibility for any advice given on certification of translation.}

Legal Translation – to Certify or Not?

Much confusion surrounds the issue of whether to certify translations meant for legal purposes.

There are generally three levels of certification available and usually the first level is all that is required. This is where a certificate is supplied by the Translation Company or professional translator that states that the translation has been completed by a professional translator in the appropriate language and that he/she has translated the document to the best of his/her ability. This confirms that the translation was carried out independently and by a professional translator.

The second level is where the certificate as for the first level is presented and signed before a Commissioner of Oaths and then signed and officially stamped by them.

The third level is notarisation, which is rarely required. The translation once completed would be verified, then signed by a Notary Public before being bound together and sealed with the original document. In some of these instances, it may be that the original English document needs to be legalised  - a process where the Foreign and Commonwealth Office legalise the signatory.

According to the Lord Chancellor’s Department, there are no regulations governing the certification of translation under English law. We have learned through experience, that most other countries do not require documents to be notarised or legalised unless they are for company incorporation, probate, taxation purposes, educational or marital certificates, etc. Whether the translation is required to be notarised and the English legalised, depends on individual country regulations. It is always advisable to check with the respective Embassy or Consulate for their specific regulations.

As a rule of thumb, if a document is needed for litigation proceedings, no legalisation or notarisation is required. An opposing side will normally accept a certificate as for the first level.

If an opposing side presents a translated document that you are dissatisfied with or you are unable to verify, there are two courses of action open. One is to have the document translated, the second is to obtain the original text and translated text and have it proofread by a professional translator.  Either way, a certificate should be supplied by the Translation Company to verify accuracy and independence. A professional translator is a person who only translates into their mother tongue, has completed a degree or equivalent in translation, belongs to an appropriate professional body and has trained as an advocate or in legal translations. An additional protection is that any work accepted by him/her is treated in the strictest of confidence.

It must be remembered that translation is an art not a science and therefore there will inevitably be preferences in style and phraseology. Many languages are not as succinct as English and so a number of interpretations can apply to a term which might unwittingly result in an adverse bias to a document or statement. Therefore, if a case revolves around a particular term or statement it may be worthwhile asking whether a term could be interpreted in more than one way.

Any professional translation company should be able to discuss your requirements regarding the handling of legal documents. For further information or advice please contact us at Acorn Translations Limited on 020 8240 6528.